Chase Colton is a brilliant surgeon sliced by a memory so vile that his wound still oozes fifteen years later. Together they learn that only truth has the power to soothe when healing is impossible. Life is not pretty, nor safe - never is. This is a story of love, compassion and most importantly honesty. Beautifully Done Battling lymphoma and staring Alzheimer’s in the face changes people. It’s why Asher Craig drives fast, flies high and screws hard. Talia Prince, a successful doctor, may have run away nineteen years ago, but has the ink to prove she never stopped looking back. Together these childhood best friends figure out that everything doesn’t have to be ideal to be beautiful. They just have to remember to live. This is a story of love, trust, acceptance and forgiveness.

    Until her best friend was murdered and the investigation forced her into a partnership with Dr. Rex Logan—the man she’d loved, lost and been hiding from for six years.Rex had put Hannah’s life in danger once before. Now he had to face her again. And this time, to protect her, he was staying close—very close. Working to expose a terrorist who possessed a weapon that could threaten global security, Rex was defenseless in the face of the powerful passion that still simmered between them. But was passion enough? And when Hannah told Rex her own secret—that she’d borne him a son—would she put all their lives in grave danger?SAFE PASSAGEWounded government agent Scott Armstrong hated his newest assignment—baby-sitting scientist Dr. Skye Van Rijn. He missed the excitement of working in the field, his only salvation from the tragedy that haunted his dreams. But the mission turned dangerous when he discovered an evil terrorist was also after the mysterious—and beautiful—doctor.Skye was a genius at developing biological antidotes to new diseases. Her tender touch and warm body soon began to heal Scott’s battered heart, but the deadly secrets she hid put both their lives at risk, sending them on the run, into the harsh wilderness. As their enemy closed in, Scott was forced to choose between his loyalties to his job—and his passion for the woman who might just be able to save his soul . . .

    Not after everything she lost on a cold, snowy night long ago. In fact, she’d be perfectly happy if the calendar jumped from November to January, bypassing December all together. Then rock’s latest “it” guy, Tate Kendrick, rolls into town, and though Ella tries to resist his wicked charm, the heat they once shared flares hotter than ever. When trouble linked to the rock star strikes at her pub, Ella suddenly starts to wonder if the return of her first love is a holiday miracle or nothing more than her nightmare before Christmas. SWEET RAPTURE by Alexandra IvyMeg Anderson has returned to her home in Holly, North Carolina after she discovered her relationship with Dylan Cain was nothing more than a lie. The last thing she expects is for Dylan to be her new tenant. Or the realization that he might be the only thing standing between her and a killer…THE SPY WHO CAME FOR CHRISTMAS by Cynthia EdenEveryone in town thinks that Jemma White is as sweet as the delicious treats she makes at her chocolate shop—but they’re wrong. Jemma is ready to let her wild side out, and she’s just found the perfect man to make all of her fantasies come true. Grayson Cole is a too-sexy-to-be-true stranger who has escaped to Holly for the holidays. He is her perfect temptation, and Jemma can’t wait to steam up the cold winter nights with him. But when danger from Grayson’s past follows him to town, she realizes that the man she is falling for has been keeping some very dark secrets…secrets that may just get them both killed. MERRY CHRISTMAS, BABY by Katie ReusAfter unexpectedly inheriting a bookstore, Nora and her younger sister settled in Holly, NC, a place where it’s Christmas year-round. As the legal guardian for her sister the past few years, romance has been the last thing on Nora’s mind. But she broke her rules for the town’s golden boy—former SEAL Jackson O’Connor. When Jackson does something stupid and almost loses Nora for good, he realizes just how far he’s willing to go for the woman who’s stolen his heart. But it might take a Christmas miracle to get Nora to give him a second chance. SINFUL IN SNOW by Laura WrightBillionaire Back In Town: Gabriel Fox is a ruthless, heartless, soulless grinch. His only goal in coming to Holly, North Carolina is to ruin Carol Cardini's Christmas. Like she ruined his—and his life—ten years ago. Now that her business is in trouble, he's finally found the way. But the beautiful owner of Christmas Carol's Shop and Crafts won't allow her dream to be destroyed. Not by revenge, and certainly not by the sexiest man she's ever known. She can, however offer an apology, and a chair at her holiday table. But can a grinch’s cold heart be warmed and healed by the love of a good woman—and the magic of Christmas spirit?HOME ADVANTAGE by Skye JordanNHL super star, Meier Grant, finds himself sidelined for a bum shoulder and sentenced to three weeks recovery—in his hometown of Holly, North Carolina. But an extended family stay isn’t on his holiday wish list, especially when his parents are more interested in capitalizing on his fame than much needed family bonding. So when he learns the high school beauty and so out-of-his-league Faith Nicholas is suddenly single, and even sexier ten years later, home doesn’t seem so bad. Not when it includes spending some quality bonding time with Faith. Meier may have some of the best moves in the league, but will they be enough to win a woman deserving of forever?Collection: 150,000 words

    Trained to be an assassin until she washed out, she was rescued by Evan Smoak, the former agent known as Orphan X.Now Joey, still a teenager and under the watchful eye of Evan Smoak, lives on her own (with Dog the dog) and attends college.While on campus, she tries to stop a young woman's suicide attempt - and fails. Then Joey uncovers the reason for Becca Morgan's desperate act - a document called The List, which ranks and rates women around campus based on their sexual appeal and performance.Determined to find the boys behind The List, the ones whose callous acts drove Becca Morgan to suicide, Joey recruits the help of her mentor, Orphan X, and uses all her skills to uncover and expose the ones responsible.Usually working from the shadows, Joey has to put herself on the line and in harm's way this time to not just avenge the dead but to protect the rest of the women who are targets of the hidden cabal behind The List.

    It’s a perfectly scandalous match...As London’s most sought-after bachelor, the Duke of Leomore stuns society when he announces his engagement to a woman who has just been branded a thief. Yet as his painfully shy “bride-to-be” understands, it is merely a ruse until The Society for Single Ladies apprehends the true culprit—and a ploy to further delay Leo’s obligation to wed. For him, marriage will be a purely practical affair. Still, why does a stolen kiss with his faux fiancée conjure such tempting visions of romance? As if being falsely accused weren’t mortifying enough, Phoebe North is now the talk of the town. And while she knows Leo did the honorable thing to protect her reputation, she can’t help but long for more. It would be an impossible match given their unequal stations, and Leo has made his view of marriage quite clear. Yet his kiss and flirtatious ways say something else. If only she could persuade him of how delightful it would be to thumb their noses at convention—and become fools for love...

    Justine’s also in the market for a proper husband—one fit to marry the future queen of Wesloria. Because he knows simply everyone, William, Lord Douglas (the notoriously rakish heir to the Duke of Hamilton seat in Scotland, and decidedly not husband material), is on hand as an escort of sorts. William has been recruited to keep an eye on the royal matchmaker for the Weslorian prime minister, tasked to ensure the princess is matched with a man of quality…and one who will be sympathetic to the prime minister’s views. As William and Justine are forced to scrutinize an endless parade of England’s best bachelors, they become friends. But when the crowd of potential grooms is steadily culled, what if William is the last bachelor standing?A Royal Match

    agent Gabriel Jones is trying to foil in Buenos Aires, Gabe keeps her from getting killed. There’s unfinished professional business between Gabe and Jenna—and an undeniable sexual attraction. It all leads to a suspenseful showdown with Gabe trying to save Jenna’s life...and protect his own heart.In Take No Prisoners , Abbie Hughes, a blackjack dealer in a Las Vegas casino, learns that her brother, Cory, is involved in a ?diamond-smuggling ring and he’s being held prisoner in ?Honduras by an unscrupulous collector. Sam Lang, a recently ?retired Black Ops, Inc. agent, has been searching for the man who murdered his sister—the same man who appears to be running a ring of gem thieves who are filtering gems into the U.S. from ?Central America. Since Cory Hughes’s name keeps popping up, Sam targets Abbie as the first line of resistance....

    But despite its efforts to present itself as a spa for the rich and famous, it can't escape its haunted past. When Bainesworth Manor calls out to the cursed, they come.And they never leave again..."Atmospheric, emotional, and well-told." --New York Times bestselling author, Lori Wilde I'm in trouble. Come get me. On a remote island off the coast of Maine lies a secluded estate. There, behind wrought iron gates and rock walls, sits Halcyon Hall. Today, it is an exclusive spa catering to wealthy elites and pampered celebrities. But once, it had another name--and a terrifying reputation . . . Rosemary Tulle has come to Halcyon Hall desperate to find her younger sister. Seventeen-year-old Genevieve left a brief, troubling message on Rosemary's phone, begging to be picked up. But Rosemary is not on the visitor list, and no one will let her in . . .Halcyon Hall was once Bainesworth Manor, an asylum for the insane. Such places often draw whispers about gruesome treatments and tortured inmates. In the case of Bainesworth, the reality may have been far worse. Now, staff insist that Genevieve ran away, but Rosemary's instincts say otherwise. Rosemary and Genevieve share an unsual bond, and she knows Genevieve wouldn't have just left. Compelled to turn for help to a man she hoped never to see again, judge Whit Lawrence, she tries to learn the truth about Genevieve. But it will mean uncovering secrets about Bainsworth Manor, and about Rosemary's own dark past--secrets with the power to kill . . ."Childs knows how to keep readers riveted." -- RT Book Reviews "Grabs you from page one . . . Lisa Childs paints an eerie, haunting suspense that will keep you riveted until the very last page!" --Rita Herron USA Today bestselling author

    Both metallic and fruity. Easing the door all the way open, she found it . . . It's Christmas-time in New York City, but homicide lieutenant Eve Dallas struggles to get into the holiday spirit. Finding a woman strangled to death by a murderous Santa doesn't help. And he's left behind a present: a partridge in a pear tree, pinned to the victim's hair.With a creeping dread, Eve watches the bodies mount and realises the key - the killer is counting down the twelve days to Christmas. And there is only one connection. The victims had been using the same dating service.Eve enters a dark world where searching for The One is fraught with terror, leaving her racing to find the murderer, as things get much too close to home. Midnight in Death (Short Story) Eve's name has made a Christmas list, but it's not for being naughty or nice. It's for putting a serial killer behind bars. Now he's escaped and has her in his sights.With her husband, Roarke, at her side, Eve must stop this madman from exacting his bloody vengeance - or die trying... Festive in Death The kitchen knife jammed into his cold heart pinned a cardboard sign to his well-toned chest. It read: Santa Says You've Been Bad!!! Ho, Ho, Ho! It's Christmas, but Lieutenant Eve Dallas is in no mood to celebrate. While her charismatic husband Roarke plans a huge, glittering party, Eve has murder on her mind.The victim - personal trainer Trey Ziegler - was trouble in life and is causing even more problems in death. Vain, unfaithful and vindictive, Trey had cultivated a lot of enemies. Which means Eve has a lot of potential suspects. And when she and Detective Peabody uncover Trey's sinister secret, the case takes a deadly turn.Christmas may be a festival of light, but Eve and Roarke will be forced once more down a very dark path in their hunt for the truth.

    When Emmaline reads one too many reports of his scandalous liaisons in the gossip rags, she takes matters into her own hands. Never Courted, Suddenly WedChristopher Ansley, Earl of Waxham, has constructed a perfect image for the ton--the ladies love him and his company is desired by all. Only two people know the truth about Waxham’s secret. Unfortunately, one of them is Miss Sophie Winters whom he's known since she was in leading strings. She is the woman his father would see him wed. And the lady he wants to avoid at all costs. Always Proper, Suddenly ScandalousGeoffrey Winters, Viscount Redbrooke was not always the hard, unrelenting lord driven by propriety. After a tragic mistake, he resolved to honor his responsibility to the Redbrooke line and live a life, free of scandal. Knowing his duty is to wed a proper, respectable English miss, he selects Lady Beatrice Dennington, daughter of the Duke of Somerset, the perfect woman for him. Until he meets the lady' cousin--Miss Abigail Stone...

    I have fought the shame of being a highwayman's son. But my strongest challenge ever is a maiden named Sarah Banks...Ah, those lips, those eyes! Any normal man would gladly surrender heart and soul to her charms. But I am not a normal man. My father's wild outlaw blood surges through me, nearly boiling over with a single glimpse of Sarah's curving body. I am drawn to the girl, yet I cannot trust my own dark nature. Oh, the sweet torment of my double bind!Now all I can do is swear to protect her from my other side—even if it means giving up my one chance at bliss...Steadfastly yours,Colin, Earl of Haverwood

    It later appeared in a compilation, Scots, Spies & Salacious Lies. It is the first of the Tenacious Trents. Lady Elizabeth craved excitement and adventure. Unwilling to endure further boring Seasons, she convinces her uncle, who has lived a more adventurous life than anyone else she knew, to let her work for him. A few years later Elizabeth was established in Tuileries Castle, a servant in Napoleon’s court known as Lisette Renard. John Phillip Trent has been working in the stables of Tuileries as Jean Pierre Bouvier for the past two years. His only English contact being Lisette Renard, a lovely blond lass, who he desired but kept at a professional arm’s length. When Lisette receives a summons to return home for Christmas, John learns that she is none other than the granddaughter of the Duke of Danby and she had named Jean Pierre as her husband. Their cover is compromised with the same letter and the two find themselves escaping the palace and France, knowing they could very well never see each other again and must face the truth of how they truly feel for the other.

    A little harmless flirting leads to a hot, completely uncharacteristic one-night stand; but when she wakes up alone, Sara knows her life is too complicated for a relationship and there can’t be a repeat.Dylan, a divorced, ex-military construction contractor, limits himself to casual flings—his failed marriage proves he’s better off alone anyway—but he can’t stop dreaming about Sara. And when his firm is hired to oversee the renovation project run by the Archer siblings, Dylan and Sara are unable to resist their explosive chemistry.But when their secret affair grows beyond “friends with benefits” and neither is willing to admit they want more, family drama and emotional scars may ruin their chance at a love they believed was only in their dreams.

    But Sebastian, Lord Byrne, has never been one for rules. He’s thought about touching Mary Clayton—a lot—and struggled to resist temptation. But when Mary’s bridegroom leaves her waiting the altar, only Sebastian can save her from ruin. By marrying her himself. In eleven years, he’s never laid a finger on his best friend’s sister. Now he’s going to take her with both hands. To have, to hold...and to love.His Duchess for a Day by USA Today Bestseller Christi Caldwell It was never meant to be…That’s what Elizabeth Terry has told herself while trying to forget the man she married--her once best friend. Passing herself off as a widow, Elizabeth has since built a life for herself as an instructor at a finishing school, far away from that greatest of mistakes. But the past has a way of finding you, and now that her husband has found her, Elizabeth must face the man she’s tried to forget.It was time to right a wrong…Crispin Ferguson, the Duke of Huntington, has spent the past years living with regret. The young woman he married left without a by-your-leave, and his hasty elopement had devastating repercussions. Despite everything, Crispin never stopped thinking about Elizabeth. Now that he’s found her, he has one request—be his duchess, publicly, just for a day. Can spending time together as husband and wife rekindle the bond they once shared? Or will a shocking discovery tear them apart...this time, forever?

    Of course, it felt wonderful...warm hands on her flesh, rough stubbled skin on her cheek. It all seemed some wonderful dream. But that hardly mattered to the ton. To them, she was ruined, for Lord Eppingham Julian Rowley had been discovered in her bed, and she'd claimed him as her own. Why had she done it? Why had she brought ruination to her name and dishonor to her family—dishonor that could only be erased by marriage? She had not wanted to trap the handsome rake in wedlock. Though she might fall forever into his golden-brown eyes, marriage to any man was not something she sought. Nor had she acted from any true fear of the ton's disdain. It had been something in Julian's touch, his kiss. Something had called out for her to guard him, to place herself in the way of his ruin. If to save this man meant to be fallen, so be it. And in saving him, she just might save herself.Librarian's note: See 2009 reprint edition here.